


An Uncomfortable Period

by canismaj0ris



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: AFAB Mollymauk, Kink Meme, M/M, M9 Friendship, Menstrual Sex, Molly + Yasha being soft friends, Trans Mollymauk Tealeaf, Vaginal Fingering, inaccurate canon timeline
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-04
Updated: 2019-09-04
Packaged: 2020-11-01 22:00:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20520923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/canismaj0ris/pseuds/canismaj0ris
Summary: (Both literally, and figuratively.)The Mighty Nein have been travelling together for a while, but Molly still didn't expect his period to start. Now he's trying to cope with cramps, irrational emotions, and a general loss of energy, without even being able to hide from everyone.All of the jokes aside, the M9 seem to be content to look after him, even if he doesn't want them to. They all have their own methods, and a lot of endearing ideas.Then Caleb offers him a heated massage, and whatever that might lead to - and Molly isn't about to turn that down.





	An Uncomfortable Period

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Ruined](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15370299) by [keefling (orphan_account)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/keefling). 
  * Inspired by [The Cure](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15692472) by [pastelNothing](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pastelNothing/pseuds/pastelNothing). 

> This uses feminine coded words for Molly's genitalia and body, so read at your own risk. Written and editted by an AFAB trans man over three separate periods, so hugely self indulgent, sorry.
> 
> Original prompt can be found here: https://criticalkink.dreamwidth.org/3194.html?thread=703866#cmt703866
> 
> _So far there are two lovely WidoMauk fics for Molly getting it on with a menstruating Caleb. I want this situation reversed. _
> 
> _Mollymauk is capable of having periods, and with them comes every symptom in the book: cramps, bloating, breakouts, soreness, cravings, and moodiness. In the circus Molly could get away with sleeping through the first few days—on the road with the Nein he is miserable. The gang does their best to comfort. Caleb’s suggestion comes with a heated hand massage, which escalates from there._
> 
> Enjoy <3

After so long on the road, it only made sense that Molly’s period was due. But the rush of the last three weeks had been enough of a distraction that he was surprised when he woke up to the bloated discomfort he always suffered from the day before.

He half assumed it was stress-induced, thanks to the mounting war and possibility of conscription. The fact his last period had finished while they were in Trostenwald, and the fact that made it the right number of days slipped completely past him.

Sadly being under-prepared meant he didn’t even have any of the wadded cloth when he felt the uncomfortable dropping feeling, in the middle of a day’s walking.

“Fjord!” he called up ahead without really thinking. The half-orc glanced back, making his chest tighten uncomfortably. But he’d already started. “Can we take a break yet?”

Except it wasn’t Fjord who answered. “We said we weren’t stopping today, Molly,” Beau called from the back of the wagon. “We’re barely out of the city. Why do we have to stop now?”

Molly had the words out of his mouth before he could think twice. “Urgent toilet break?”

Nott cackled from her seat up on the front of the wagon. “You mean you need to take a crap?”

If all of his internal organs weren’t being mangled, he might have laughed with her. “Will you agree if I say yes?”

It clearly didn’t matter either way, the wagon pulling to the side of the road before Nott could answer. Jester hopped down from the back, stretching her legs and running to talk to Fjord, the others on their horses stopping as well.

Molly pulled WC up behind the wagon, taking a second to let the next wave of painful cramps cross through his body before he tried to move. Before he even managed, Yasha appeared beside his horse. She held a hand out to help him down, a wad of cotton and a piece of grey-ish brown tree bark tucked safely away in her palm.

He let her take his waist, his waist, helping him slide down the side of his horse and taking the offered goods as he went. “How do you always know what I need?”

She smiled, shaking her head. “I know you, Molly.”

“Thanks.” He reached up to press a kiss to her cheek. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

By the time he’d sorted himself out, he knew there was no saving his underclothes from red-brown stains. As always.

It was on his way back to the wagon that the next wave of cramps knocked the wind out of him. He froze, bending double and wrapping his stomach in his arms. While the cramps continued, he would be unable to move.

“Your stomach ain’t that bad, is it?” Beau shouted, sounding rather amused at his pain.

“Maybe he’s got the shits!” Nott helpfully provided, shoving Jester forward.

She jumped into action almost immediately, running to meet him. “Oh, yes! I have magic that can deal with that, hang on!”

He shook his head as she took his arm, pulling him forward even though his muscles had calmed down and he was able to straighten up fully. “I’ll be fine, Jessie. Save your spells.”

When he reached the group, they were all looking over at him carefully, inspecting him.

Fjord stepped forward, squeezing Molly’s shoulder. “Sit on the back of the wagon for the rest of today. No point making you more uncomfortable than y’already are.”

Molly’s awful self-preservation instincts made him want to refuse, but he could already feel the heavy feeling of worsening cramps in the pit of his stomach.

“That would be great,” he admitted, his forced smile slipping. “Thanks.”

Fjord nodded before shuffling into the pseudo-leadership position he’d started to take on, rallying the other back to their horses.

Another hand replaced Fjord’s on Molly’s shoulder, and a grumpy growl jumped out of his mouth. Yasha hummed a quiet laugh, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “Come on,” she said, even quieter than normal, carefully guiding him to the back of the wagon.

She pushed him into the pile of bedrolls and blankets they stored in the wagon, and Molly couldn’t help immediately falling into the pile. Yasha sat beside him, pulling him to curl up beside her, head on her lap.

She knew him better than any of the others, knew just how bad his cycle could be. They fell into this routine at the carnival, with Molly taking a few days every month to recover, and Yasha visiting whenever she had a break so they could cuddle.

Even if he felt like he was coping at the minute, they both knew it wouldn’t last. The dizziness would come soon, the nausea, the feelings of panic. And Yasha would be there, giving him the support he needed.

One of her hands pulled through his hair, tangling in the curls. “How are you feeling?”

He shrugged, trying to get himself comfortable. “Could be worse.” Something at the back of his brain reminded him it would be worse, but that wasn’t worth thinking about.

“Chew on the bark I gave you.”

Her tone was solid, almost commanding, and he wasn’t about to argue. It tasted like menthol, weirdly sweet. The flavour (combined with the rocking of the cart) almost made him nauseous.

The rest of the day went in a blur of cramps and fuzziness, Yasha giving him gentle attention. Molly let himself nod off, sleep the only way to get through the worsening side effects.

When they stopped for the night, the whole world was spinning. His entire body felt heavy. His muscles were shaking, and he was sure he’d bled through his wadding. In short, he felt like hell and wanted nothing more than to curl up and go back to sleep.

“Are you alright, Mollymauk?”

Caleb held a hand out to help him down for the wagon, blue eyes watching carefully. Molly’s anger bristled, a voice in his head saying that Caleb viewed him as weak for being like this. He pushed the irrational thought away and forced a smile. “I’ve felt better.”

Caleb nodded, glancing over his shoulder towards the rest of their group, raising his voice so they would hear. “Jester can help you with that?”

Except Jester was already studying him, examining him like a temple she planned to deface. Her head was tilted to the side, her face all twisted. If Molly had been thinking clearly he would have found her adorable. 

Then Jester gasped, almost hopping on the spot for a second in her excitement. “Molly! Are you on your period?”

Something unpleasant twisted in his gut - something that wasn’t menstrual cramps - slimy and uncomfortable.

“Well, you don’t have to be so loud about it.”

Beau and Nott were staring at him. Beau was clearly trying to re-frame her thoughts about him. Nott, on the other hand, was looking at him with that motherly pity she normally reserved for Caleb.

Something like embarrassment burned through him, so unlike he normally would feel. His hormones were making irrational anxiety twist through him.

Jester sidled up beside him, pressing her hand into the small of his back. He almost pushed her away, irritated by her whole existence. Then she started muttering a prayer, and the aching through his body lifted slightly.

“Does that feel better?” she asked, looking him up and down while she continued her spell.

He nodded, taking a painless breath for the first time in hours. “Thanks, Jessie.”

She nodded happily. “It won’t help with everything, but it should help a little bit! And I can do it again if you want me to. It’s only a cantrip.”

He copied her nodding, making the world spin. “Thank you.”

As Jester headed back to her, Molly glanced at the group around him. He’d expected to be questioned, ridiculed, stared at, but everyone had moved to set up camp. Only Jester kept glancing over at him, but only in that way the cleric also spent her time looking at Caleb during a battle or Fjord just generally.

There was none of the pity or confusion he always dreaded. If they were willing to take this in their stride, he had made the right choice. 

Fjord tapped Molly on the shoulder, yanking him from the warm feeling that replaced his anxiety. “We need to get more wood for a fire, I y’don’t mind.”

Molly couldn’t help pausing before he nodded. This was their usual routine, something shockingly normal compared to his brain, and it made his heart sing. Fjord led them towards the tree line in silence, as he always did.

And so Molly started talking - as always. “We should cook some good food tonight. It’s been a long day, and we have the supplies.”

“We should,” Fjord agreed easily, leading them into the trees. “We’ve been on the road a real long time. Could do with the luxury.”

They collected fallen twigs, dry wood and the leaf little surrounding the bottom of the trees rather than cutting any wood, leaving no mark of where they’d been. It took him longer than it usually would have to collect enough, the world around him still fuzzy. The movement helped relieve the uncomfortable feeling in Molly’s lower abdomen, and the repetitive nature helped his anxiety drip away.

Fjord just collected more than he normally would have, not even suggesting anything was different.

Back at camp, the other’s had already made a circle of bedrolls, protected on one side by a rocky hill, and the other by the wagon.

They were met by Jester before they even reached the circle. She lifted the woodpile out of Fjord’s arms with ease, barely acknowledging the two of them. “Finally! Yasha, are you ready to start cooking?” There was a sound of agreement from the campsite as Yasha shifted whatever she’d been preparing to the fire pit. “Apparently she’s making something you used to eat all the time at the carnival, Molly. One of her favourites.”

Molly couldn’t help the quiet excitement and his bright smile at the idea. If it was one of Yasha’s favourites, it had to be one of the warm and spicy stews they made so rarely. He hadn’t even known they had the ingredients for it.

Caleb was already prepared to start building the fire, another of their practised routines falling into place. Molly dropped his collection onto the growing pile.

“Hopefully that’s dry enough,” he shrugged, Caleb not even looking towards him. “I couldn’t find much.”

“I am sure it’s fine,” Caleb replied slowly, overly focused on the task at hand.

The next hour or so they spent preparing their meal and getting on with basic chores - quick mendings, organising supplies, whatever hobbies the group of them had. At one point, Jester waved Molly over, holding up a pile of cotton wadding very seriously, dragging him out of the way of the group to clean his bloodied pads. He barely had the energy to talk to her by this point, too busy focusing on the pain and dizziness.

On the way back he finally caved and asked Jester for more help, sighing as she cast a quiet spell. This one seemed stronger, relieving not only the pain but enough of the nausea that he even felt hungry when Yasha called them for dinner.

The stew was exactly what he hoped, a hearty stew filled with game meat (caught by Nott at some point that day), a handful of root vegetables and stewed grains they had in their pockets, and something sharp and spicy Yasha had apparently had hidden away in her belongings.

She sat down next to Molly with her bowl, giving him a gentle smile. He leaned against her, humming happily as he started eating.

“You are an absolute angel,” he managed between mouthfuls. “You spoil me.”

Her quiet laughter and the soft kiss she placed on the top of his head made him melt further into her, happily eating away at the nostalgia-filled bowl.

They ate in almost complete silence, exhaustion poured heavily over the group. Even Jester did not manage to keep the conversation going once they had food in their hands.

Molly could feel his brain vanishing again, drifting into a quiet annoyance at the world. Beau was chewing too loudly, her spoon scraping against her bowl with every mouthful. Nott had already finished eating and was counting out the buttons she had tucked away, letting them click together as they fell into piles. Caleb wouldn’t put his book down, muttering to himself under his breath - it buzzed in the back of Molly’s brain, vibrating under his skin. It was getting on his nerves.

Yasha wrapped her arm tightly around his shoulders, pulling his head against her. Her hand looped up to draw patterns along his hairline, effectively covering his ear with her hand, while the other pressed against her chest.

With the sounds muffled, and he could finally hear himself growling quietly, feel his tail thrashing behind him. He hadn’t even noticed.

“Sorry,” he whispered, the words echoing loudly around his head. “Just a little on edge.”

He couldn’t see her reaction, but he felt quiet laughter rumbling thought her chest. The hand on his hairline began to scratch along the juncture between his scalp and his horn. Molly couldn’t stop his eyes flickering closed, falling into the feeling with a contented purr.

Yasha only let go of him when Fjord cleared his throat, trying to organise watch groups for the night - not that that took effort when it came to the Nein. Molly didn’t offer himself for watch, and Fjord didn’t even have to ask him. Even without him, they had enough people to cover the night.

Something about not being asked rubbed him the wrong way, leaving the bitter aftertaste of being viewed as weak. But he also knew they were just trying to be nice, all aware that Molly hadn’t been at his best today. And if he was being honest, his lack of focus could put the whole group into danger.

With another dose of Jester’s healing magic and some more birch bark from Yasha, sleep came surprisingly easy for the first night of his period. Molly managed to fall asleep within minutes of resting his head on his balled-up coat (containing two swords, obviously). His sleep was dreamless and silent, exactly the kind of sleep he adored.

The next morning he awoke early, when only the final watch shift were awake. As soon as he sat up to stretch the aches from his joints, Jester was in front of him. It was oddly convenient that she was on the early morning shift, but he shut his suspicion down as quickly as it arose.

She led him once again to a more secluded section of their campsite, just beyond the tree line. From there, she produced water from nothing, filling a small metal container she carried for this exact purpose. Once she judged it ready, she sat back against one of the nearby trees, eyes falling closed. Molly stripped himself down, happy for the unusual privacy with the anxiety boiling in his veins.

They remained in silence for longer than either of them usually managed, maybe five minutes, before Jester landed on a topic of conversation.

“Do you ever think about how much it sucks that we have periods? As in, because we’re tieflings?”

Molly shook his head, carefully working over the fabric in his hand. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Well, technically, we wouldn’t have periods if it wasn’t for our human blood.” Her tail was coiling absently beside her. “Like, demons don’t have them, you know? Most humanoids don’t. It’s only our human blood that gives us them.”

Molly had no frame of reference on whether that was true or not - he’d always just assumed everyone with parts like his had periods. “Are you sure that’s right?”

She nodded in her over-enthusiastic way. “Uh-huh! Didn’t your mom ever tell you?”

Something in his brain snapped. He had no idea if he’d ever been told that, no memory of if his mom had told him, or if he even had a mom. Admittedly, he must have had parents of some kind, but some tiny, irrational part of him argued he was completely alone in the world. 

Jester’s arms were around him before he even realised he was crying.

“It’s okay Molly, it’s okay!” Jester sounded frantic, and she was patting him awkwardly on the head. “What’s the matter?”

“I don’t know. I don’t _know_.”

And it was a genuine response, even though Jester didn’t look like she believed him. Molly never worried about his lost past, whatever happened before he woke up. He never felt like he wanted to cry about it. But something about the question caught a weird, hormonal nerve. It wasn’t what Jester had said, it was just whatever the _fuck_ his brain and body and organs were doing. It was the final drop of rainwater before his bucket overflowed with emotion and pain.

It wasn’t actually the idea that he hadn’t been told that by his mother - he didn’t know his mother - he didn’t know _anything_ \- it was the burning feeling of hormones, and cramps, and whatever the fuck his brain and body and organs were doing.

But he continued to cry his eyes out in that lacklustre way that wasn’t even cathartic, and Jester continued to hold him close, whispering support while she stroked his hair. They didn’t move until Yasha appeared. She didn’t speak, already used to Molly’s erratic emotions. She just joined them on the floor, wrapping her arms around the two of them.

It was comforting and grounding, and Molly would have to thank her thoroughly when he had the chance.

When she finally did speak, it was with the usual Yasha straightforwardness.

“We need to get moving,” she stood up, effortlessly pulling the two of them up with her.

Molly stepped back, drying his eyes on the sleeve of his shirt and collecting the discarded cotton wadding. “Let’s go, then.”

They walked in silence back to camp, Yasha holding Molly’s hand as they walked. The group were already sat around the fire, something warm and sweet-smelling cooking in a pot Nott was tending to. It wasn’t often she was allowed to cook, and both Fjord and Caleb watched her carefully, making sure she didn’t add anything untoward to the mixture.

It was only as he got closer that Molly realised it was porridge to go with the usual rations of nuts and dried fruit and pocket bacon that the group passed around as travel rations.

Beau was organising the spices, clearly taking advantage of the missing Jester to add much less cinnamon, nutmeg and sugar than the tiefling would try to sneak into their food. There was even a collection of overly-ripe fresh berries, scrounged from a blackberry bush they’d passed only a few days ago. It smelt like heaven, warm and sweet and just what Molly needed.

It wasn’t often they had breakfast like this, but this morning it had must have been deemed necessary - something twinged in the back of his brain, but he wasn’t about to analyse why.

“Beau! Did you already add the cinnamon without me?” Jester rushed forward, the lightly pink sleeves of her dress fluttering behind her. “You better have added enough!”

“What, you don’t trust me to do a good enough job cooking?” Beau near-shouted back, with no actual bite. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

They continued to bicker back and forth, getting quieter the closer they stood. Molly couldn’t hide his smile.

By the time he and Yasha had rejoined the group, Nott was ladling out the porridge, dropping berries on top. Molly was the last one to hand over his bowl, waiting until the porridge was thick and gloopy. Nott handed over a generous serving, complete with a handful of fresh berries. That was more than the couple the others had received.

He stared down at her, eyes narrowed. Nott gave him a soft smile in reply, and Molly was immediately powerless to argue.

The blackberries were already starting to leak purple juice into the porridge, the warms making their outer skin burst even more quickly.

This was his favourite thing. Fresh fruit, picked along the side of the road while the carnival travelled. They were some of his earliest memories, and the treat that repeated itself often along their usual trails and tracks. He’d excitedly picked as many blackberries as he could hold when they’d come across a bush teeming with them, and Nott had obviously noticed.

Breakfast was a quick affair, but still full of chatter. It was mostly Jester and Beau arguing about the correct way to season a porridge. Fjord seemed to be trying to stop them, but he was getting nowhere to - Jester was just too adept at persuading him that she was right, even when he disagreed with her.

Yasha leaned forward, her breath brushing his ear. “How long do you think until he realises he has feelings for her?”

Molly grinned, trying desperately to contain his laugher. “Oh, he most definitely knows. But how long until Jester notices too?”

“She already does,” Yasha replied quicker than he was expecting. “She just thinks that she’s making it up.”

Molly cackled to himself, shaking his head. “But it’s so obvious! Of course he is!”

“But she doesn’t know that.”

He was too busy gossiping and giggling to notice the extra berries appearing in his porridge. When he next glanced down, there were even more of them, and the small figure of Nott scurrying back towards Caleb.

“Did you see that?” he asked, glancing over to his companion.

She simply stared back, before nodding. “I think she is trying to be nice.”

The ‘because you’ve been unwell’ was left unsaid, but still made his head spin. But again, he wasn’t going to complain about having more of his favourite food, even if it was ridiculous that this little goblin girl was trying to look after him.

“Who’s taking the back of the wagon today?” Beau asked sharply, clearly trying to change the topic from her bickering with Jester. “Molly, you want to be up there again?”

He wanted to say no, just on the principle of saying no, but his exhausted muscles twinged. “Well, I’m not going to argue with that, if no one minds.”

It wasn’t really a question, but a few people shook their heads. The relief that flooded his system was unbelievable.

The rest of the morning went quickly. The rhythm of packing away the nights camp was nothing new to Molly after the years he spent with the carnival, and the familiar rhythm replacing whatever leftover anxiety he had. There was very little to do after such a quiet night, but he still helped Jester and Beau wrap up the bedrolls, and collecting together anything that had been dropped.

Before they moved to head off, Molly settled himself into the wagon, leaning against the back of the driver’s seat. Yasha had left him to ride one of the horses, alongside everyone but Caleb and Fjord. So when Nott clambered onto the front of the wagon, he couldn’t help but feel suspicious.

She spun herself around to face Molly, before reaching into the depths of her pocket and pulling out a few pieces of bacon. She dropped them on his knee so fast it felt like an illicit deal. “I saved this from breakfast. I thought you might want them.”

“We didn’t have bacon at breakfast,” he pointed out, tilting his head to one side with mock innocence. He could feel himself grinning, even if he didn’t feel the humour he intended.

Nott grinned back, all sharp teeth and cat-like eyes. “Then I don’t think you want to know where it comes from.”

It took him a second to think of a reply, but Nott had already spun her way back around, taking hold of the reigns as Fjord pulled his horse alongside to guide her.

Molly picked it up from his trousers, rubbing the weird mark it left behind as he considering how much lint was too much to eat. He was still sat there staring at it when Caleb climbed into the back of the wagon.

“Do you think this is edible?” he asked carefully, holding a piece up for Caleb to see.

He studied it with his usual level of intent. “Possibly? Where did it come from, Beauregard’s pocket?”

“From Nott’s,” Molly answered as he decided to just take a bite. The extremely peppery taste hit him immediately, making him cough. “Do you think it makes a difference?”

Caleb didn’t reply immediately, watching Molly take another bite, a half-smile on his face. “What does it tastes like, to you?”

“Like pepper,” he answered instantly, before pausing again. “Maybe a bit burnt? And a bit like metal.” Molly still couldn’t decide if he liked it. “Do you know how she prepares it?”

“I imagine it is an alchemy ingredient.”

Molly quickly put the rest of the bacon down, staring at it warily. “So it’s chemicals?”

Caleb’s lips twitched, but they didn’t pull fully into a smile. “_Ja_, chemicals.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t eat this, then.”

There was almost laugher in Caleb’s voice. “Perhaps not.”

Before Molly could drop the rashers off the side of the cart, Caleb reached over and took them. Molly couldn’t help staring at him as he took a bite. “I have eaten worse,” the wizard gave as an explanation. “No sense letting it go to waste.”

Something made Molly want to ask what counted as worse than contaminated bacon, but he had no idea how to address that. It was obvious that Caleb had had a difficult life, with his over-sized, battered clothes, super skinny appearance, his general demeanour. But Mollymauk still wasn’t sure if he wanted to know, or if he should even try asking.

His train of thought was broken as the cart lurched forward.

Now that they were moving, Caleb settled into his usual routine. He pulled out one of the books that he kept tucked away under his coat, falling silent as he read through the notes he had made there, unconcerned by the movement of the cart and the general chatter of the people around them.

Jester and Beau were happily talking between themselves, riding side by side. Whatever friendship they had gained before meeting with the rest of the group, it had persevered, and they were chatting back and forth about Moonweaver knows what. Every so often, one of them would shoot a question towards Yasha, who rode at the other side of the cart, and she would give a soft answer.

Behind Molly’s head, Fjord was continuing the teach Nott how to handle the horses. She’d been making progress fairly quickly, and Fjord seemed pleased with her ability, calling quiet praise and tips from where he rode alongside.

Molly settled back, letting himself lean against one of the fastened up bed roles. It was relaxing, between the sounds of his companions and the rocking of the cart below him.

He must have nodded off at some point because the next thing he knew he was being stabbed through the stomach.

Or, at least, it felt like he was. His cramps were back with a vengeance. Moving made him groan out loud, but he curled himself into a ball automatically, eyes screwed shut as he tried to breath through the pain.

“Mollymauk?” Caleb asked quietly. “Are you okay?”

He couldn’t even open his mouth, pain making the world spin. He tried to pull himself into some kind of sitting position, but nausea washed over his body the moment he even lifted his head.

“Molly?”

There was definite commotion around him, but Molly could only focus on keeping himself breathing and stopping himself from violently throwing up in the middle of their wagon. The cramps were unforgiving, even between contractions, and all of his energy was being used to stop himself violently throwing up in the middle of the wagon.

Hands tried to reach towards him, but he shoved them off. It all felt like too much, needles pressing into his skin. But they wouldn’t stop, wouldn’t let him be. His talons bit into the warm flesh of whoever was touching him, Infernal rolling off his tongue in the hopes he would scare them off.

Another hand - larger, cooler - pressed against the small of his back. Again he pushed back, but they were stronger than he was. Even the blood magic rolling off his tongue did nothing to get them to move.

Warmth flooded his body, surrounded by the tingling feeling of magic. Relief flooded his system as the pain retreated to a dull ache.

“Shit,” he managed, eyes flicking open. Jester was stood over him, but Yasha was the one with the hand on his back. Jester had blood running down her arm, gashes covering her delicate blue skin. Beau had her arms around Jester, looking ready to fight.

He turned back to Yasha, letting out a shaky huff. Blood dripped from the corner of her eye, a red haze still covering her pupils. The world began to flip itself over.

He groaned again, screwing his eyes shut until it stopped.

Yasha sat down more heavily beside him, pulling him into her lap so she could press her hands directly to his stomach. Her fingers hooked into the top of his trousers, and perhaps he should have been embarrassed, but instead, he relaxed back into her.

Someone handed him a waterskin, and he made himself take a long, slow drink, hoping the nausea would subside soon. One he was done, he forced himself round to be fully on Yasha’s knee, curled into her chest with her arm around him, keeping her healing going as long as she could.

“Sorry,” he managed to force out, barely above a whisper. Yasha squeezed him tighter but didn’t respond.

“We can keep moving,” she said in her usual calm and measured tone. “He will come round soon enough.”

Molly hadn’t even realised they’d stopped moving, too absorbed in his pain.

“Is Jester okay?” His voice was too quiet, cracking as he spoke.

Yasha shuffled him around to make them both more comfortable, placing her spare hand on his knee. “I’m sure she’s okay.”

There wasn’t a break before Jester spoke up as well. “I’m fine, Molly,” she said carefully, quietly, as if she was talking to a wounded animal. “I can heal myself, don’t worry!”

Except he was worried, suddenly aware that he’d hurt a friend in the haze of pain and hormones. He couldn’t run from the responsibility, especially around a group of new people he couldn’t disappear from. There was a reason he always slept through the first two days of his period, and now he couldn’t hide from his bodily reaction. His anxiety spiked, and tears immediately pricked at the corners of his eyes.

Gods, he hated being on his period.

Yasha pulled him in closer, letting him bury his face into the fluff of her shawl.

He heard someone jump down from the cart, and felt the jolt as it started moving. Molly let himself drift away from the world and further into the spiral of anxiety and pain his hormones had chucked at him.

When Yasha’s magic had finally faded, the pain had subsided but Molly still couldn’t bring himself to move. This was just where he was now, but Yasha didn’t seem to mind. Her arms were still wrapped around him, her head resting on top of his. She was humming a soft and rolling lullaby, with off-sounding notes and a broken tune.

They stayed like that for most of the morning, until they stopped in the early hours of the afternoon. Molly made himself look up, lifting himself from Yasha’s comfort.

“Why are we stopping?” he asked, his voice quieter than he’d expected. They’d agreed not to stop until nightfall, days beforehand when they realised how behind they were.

Fjord stared at him as the half-orc stepped down from his horse. “Thought we could do with a longer bathroom break, seen as y’haven’t been feeling well.”

It was such a straightforward admission that they were adjusting their day because of him, but Molly was still grateful for it. He needed to stretch his legs and clean himself up, at least so he would be comfortable for the rest of the day.

It didn’t take him long to escape into the forest, taking full advantage of a bathroom break after so long on the road. Having a chance to clean himself up made Molly feel substantially better, even though he would be able to wash himself properly until they found running water (or, more likely, reached a town with a bathhouse). 

It wasn’t a long break, but it was enough. Jester swapped with Yasha, arguing that “technically, I have more healing spells than you, technically,” to stop Yasha from arguing. As they started to move, Jester reaching over to put a hand on top of Molly’s head, digging her fingers into his curls as she cast a healing spell.

“Thanks,” he said carefully, giving Jester the brightest smile he could manage.

“Don’t worry about it,” she ruffled his hair and grinned back at him. “I’m sorry you’re not feeling well today. Cramps suck.”

He nodded, shifting to pull her against his side. She was comfortably warm against him. “Yeah, they do.”

Jester put her head on his shoulder, her hand dropping from his hair to trace patterns on his back. Her horn dug through his coat, keeping him in the moment.

The rest of the day was uneventful all over again, the countryside barely changing as they headed north. They only passed one other cart, a merchant carrying supplies to Zadash. The lack of interaction made the day feel sluggish, and the conversation between the group had dropped away almost an hour ago. Everyone was absorbed in their own little worlds, and Beau even looked like she was meditating or something.

About halfway through the day, Jester moved to sit between Molly’s legs, leaning back against him gently. The warmth of her body holding off his cramps, and Molly had wrapped his arms around her to keep her close.

She was reading whatever book she’d picked up in the city and seemed to think that Molly was reading along with her, and he didn’t see any point in correcting her. Each time she asked whether he was finished the page, he murmured that he was, not wanting to break the sleepy haze that had fallen across the group.

“Hey, Molly? Jester?” Or perhaps Beau wasn’t meditating at all. “Have you ever tried sex to stop period cramps?”

It took Molly a minute to think about the question, not sure why the hell she thought that was a good choice to break the silence.

“It’s orgasms, not specifically sex, though,” Jester answered in that matter of fact way she used.

At the same time, Fjord gave a flustered and sharp reply of “D’you have to ask that question, Beau?”

The monk opened her eyes and threw her hands in the air. “Hey! I’m just trying to think of other solutions for Molly!”

He smirked, giving her a wink when she turned to look straight at him. “Are you offering, Beauregard?”

“Oh, you fucking wish, asshole,” she scoffed with the angry intent of someone who’d just heard something incredibly ridiculous. “I’ve just helped people before and was curious if it actually worked.”

Molly didn’t have to consider his answer very long before Jester jumped in for him.

“Of course! It works really well, too.” Jester nodded himself, pausing to think about her answer. “It makes you feel really good, and it stops cramps for a while!”

“Not always,” Molly found himself imputing before he’d even really thought about it. Jester stopped, tilting her head up to look at him. He shrugged, keeping his eyes tracked on Beau. “Sometimes it makes cramps worse at first, even if it makes them better eventually, it still makes them worse first,” he laughed, pulling Jester more tightly against him, “and when your cramps are as bad as mine, it ain’t worth it.”

“That sucks, man,” Beau made a little noise of understanding, eyes closing into her meditative state again. “Thanks.”

It was pretty obvious that was the end of the conversation for Beau, and maybe that was for the best, considering how red Fjord’s neck was, Caleb’s face was almost the same colour as his hair, as he stared into the distance blankly.

“Does getting off really make it worse for you, though?” Jester asked quietly, leaning her head softly against Molly’s chest. “That’s not fair.”

“No, it’s not,” he agreed, shrugging. “But such is life.”

“Have you ever tried it with someone else? Or just by yourself?”

Molly laughed, perhaps a little too loudly. “Myself. Cramps don’t generally help with flirting.”

Jester giggled to herself, clapping her hands together. “_Molly_! Maybe you should try it with someone else, see if it makes it better, maybe.” Even if he couldn’t see her, Molly could tell she was wiggling her eyebrows.

“Are you offering now? If I’d known this many people wanted to sleep with me, I would have started weeks ago.” There was none of the teasing fire in his retort this time. He could hardly tell if she was serious, but he wasn’t sure he cared either way.

“No, sorry. I only have sex where it’s comfortable, not in the dirt.”

They both burst into fits of giggles. “Well, then, my dear,” Molly curled over her, tapping her on the nose, “you clearly don’t understand how wonderful sex in the dirt can be.”

She twisted around to reply, her mouth partially open, when Fjord cleared his throat. “Perhaps we should- we should stop talking about this.”

Both tieflings glanced turned to look at the half-orc. He hadn’t even turned around, and the red on the back of his neck was getting even worse. Even his ears were a strange shade of pink. It made Jester’s giggling worse, and Molly has to press his face into her shoulder to stop himself joining her.

When they finally pulled off the road to camp for the night, they’d barely stopped teasing him, the two of them bouncing back and forth with assumptions about the various seamen Fjord must have known. It wasn’t one of Molly’s best jokes, but eventually Nott had joined in, and Beau resurfaced to join them, and maybe it was cruel to gang up on Fjord like that, but at least he’d been laughing along with them.

Camp that night was a simple affair, and by the time they were finished setting up, it was too late to cook any real food. The trail snacks were dry and powdery but paired with plenty of jerky and some more scavenged fruit, none of them could complain.

Watches were divided up, although Molly tried to argue he should take one seen as he had a night off yesterday. He wasn’t feeling half bad at this point, but Jester has been quick to point out he would need more healing if he stayed awake. And she wouldn’t have enough spells to keep up with that. It took almost ten minutes of back and forth Infernal with the other tiefling for him to finally give in - and only after she agreed he could take extra shifts once he was well again.

When they finally settled down, anger was rumbling under Molly’s skin. Everyone else had curled up around each other, but he sat himself off to one side, back pressed against Yasha’s. He wrapped himself in his coat, his entire body was heavy with exhaustion, his hormones stealing what little energy he had left. As the camp fell silent around him, he tried to make his thoughts peaceful and waited for the dreams to overtake him.

Except his body didn’t want him to be comfortable. He lay in his bedroll, eyes closed and waiting for himself to nod off for what felt like hours. He was getting more and more uncomfortable, the floor prodding him awkwardly, his muscles aching. And then - because it couldn’t get any worse - the cramps started again. They were lighter, less painful than some of the others, but he still curled up tightly.

It only took a few minutes for Molly to completely give up, chucking his coat off himself. Caleb was sat beside a small fire they had built, far enough off from the trail that it shouldn’t attract any attention.

Molly left his coat where it was on the floor, not bothered to wrap himself up when the fire would keep him warm enough.

He dropped himself on the ground next to the wizard, arms folded across his chest in annoyance. “Where’s Nott?”

Caleb didn’t even look towards him, too busy looking out into the darkness. “She is collecting firewood.”

Molly nodded, looking off into the distance for a moment. It was almost peaceful, with the dark wrapped around them and the stars peeking through the clouds every so often. Too bad they weren’t technically safe and free from harm, otherwise it would have been Molly’s ideal place to exist.

Then a cramp overtook his body, making him curl up against his knees. They were getting bad again, one last hurrah before they normally cooled off on the third day of his cycle.

“Are you still in pain?” Caleb asked in a much quieter voice.

Molly scoffed. “What does it look like?” He’d meant it to be as sharp, but instead it was murmured and full of pain.

There was a beat, and for a second Molly wondered if Caleb was uncomfortable with the conversation.

And then he shuffled closer, putting a hand on Molly’s lower back. “Would you like some help with that?”

“What are you offering?”

“Not- not that.” Caleb had immediately gone read, and his accent had almost gotten thicker as he got more flustered. “It is not that- but it was- I did not mean that.”

It took Molly a minute to realise what the other was talking about, the conversation from earlier already forgotten. Something curious bubbled through him, making Molly’s gut tighten. “No offence, Caleb, but you were the last person I expected to ask me for sex.” Excluding Nott, obviously - he wasn’t even sure she was an adult. “So what were you actually offering?”

Caleb took a deep breath, as if Molly had caught a nerve. “It is not that I would be opposed, Mollymauk. You just said it didn’t help.” He stopped, blue eyes tracking Molly as the tiefling watched him carefully. He didn’t even look hesitant once he started talking. And perhaps Molly wouldn’t be opposed to the idea, either. “But I can use my magic to heat my hands, and I know that a massage can help, or can at least be relaxing, and heat helps as well, so perhaps… I could try and help you?”

It didn’t take much for Molly to decide. “A massage sounds wonderful,” he couldn’t stop himself smiling over at him, “And perhaps Jester’s suggestion I try with someone else has some merit, too. If you aren’t opposed.”

He shuffled himself closer, intending to place a kiss against Caleb’s neck, but the next wave of cramps caught him off guard. He ended up leaning against Caleb’s shoulder, arms wrapped around his stomach, just trying to breathe.

Caleb reached around him to rub circles against his back. “Perhaps we should start with the massage, and see what happens from there?”

He considered it for a second, before nodding. Honestly, he would take anything for pain relief right now, and whatever heated massage Caleb was willing to offer sounded perfect.

Caleb spread his knees wider, tapping the ground between his legs with his spare hand. “Come here, then. I will start on your back, _ja_?”

It took Molly a few tries, the cramps making his other muscles seize uncomfortably. When he finally sat where Caleb had requested, Molly couldn’t help leaning back against the wizard, exhausted and in too much pain to consider anything else. “Can you start with my stomach? I’m not sure anything else will help right now.”

Caleb’s hum of agreement rumbled through Molly’s chest uncomfortably, his body oversensitive from pain. “Anywhere I shouldn’t touch?”

“Don’t touch my chest, if you can.” He could feel Caleb looking through his coat for the spell components he needed. “It’s too sensitive today.”

“Of course,” Caleb nodded, before switching to an arcane language that Molly couldn’t identify. It was only a few words before the heat was rolling from his hands. “I’ll start now, _ja_?”

His hand hovered about an inch above Molly’s lower abdomen. Even at this distance, the warmth felt amazing, making Molly lean further against Caleb.

Caleb didn’t need any more persuasion, pressing his palm fully against Molly’s stomach, still over his shirt. It was barely a touch, soft and gentle, but Molly still hummed happily.

Then he pressed down, the warmth emanating through Molly’s stiff muscles. His fingers and palm rubbing wide circles, making the pain spike for a moment.

Then Caleb’s other hand joined the repetitive motion, putting pressure evenly across his stomach and lower. The circles became smaller, more measured, and the pain dropped to a dull ache.

Molly could feel Caleb falling into a rhythm as the massage continued, counting the movement under his breath. Maybe it should have been annoying, but it was no secret that Caleb liked his patterns, and this was clearly working for him.

As the ache slowly shifted away, Molly gave a quiet sigh of contentment. If he was honest, it was bordering on pleasurable, finally having some relief from the pain of the last two days. There was a different kind of heat was building under Caleb’s hand, moving lower than his fingers ever strayed.

“Can you move to my back now?” He sounded quieter than he expected, blissed out by the warmth and the comfort.

Caleb didn’t respond this time, shuffling himself backwards so he could massage Molly’s shoulders. His thumbs pressed in deep below the tieflings shoulder blades, working at the knots he’d developed during their long journey.

As Caleb slowly moved down, Molly wrapped the tip of his tail around his wrist, keeping it out of the way while Caleb continued his ministrations. He couldn’t help the quiet moan of relief he let out.

When his hands finally reached Molly’s lower back, pressing warm and close, Molly found himself leaning back, until his head was resting against Caleb’s shoulder. It wasn’t a comfortable position, but he couldn’t hold his now relaxed muscles in place any longer.

“Thank you.”

It was a quiet statement, breathed against Caleb’s neck instead of spoken out loud. Caleb’s quiet laughter rang through his body in response.

“It’s no problem. As long as you’re feeling better.” His fingers pressed in slightly harder, and for a moment Molly’s brain slipped completely. He could fall asleep like this. “I am always here to help if you need it.”

As Calebs spoke, Molly turned to look at his face. The Zemnian was staring down at his hands, clearly focusing on the massage.

He was beautiful in the gold firelight, his hair glittering a shocking bronze. His eyebrows were pinched in concentration, blue eyes so focused that Molly couldn’t help preening under his gaze. It was a delicate and striking scene, pulling something in the pit of his stomach.

“Caleb?”

The wizard hesitated, before looking up to Molly’s face. “Yes, Mollymauk?”

“I think I’ve changed my mind,” he made himself twist further, disconnecting from the wonderful warmth of Caleb’s hands. “Can I kiss you?”

Caleb blinked back at him, before nodding roughly. His cheeks were already lighting up red, and Molly couldn’t help grinning as he surged forward.

There was no build-up between the two of them. The kiss was forceful, moving straight into tongues and accidentally clashing teeth, but Caleb matched it with ease. It wasn’t the most comfortable kissing experience, considering how exhausted Molly had been, but his arousal was building so much quicker than he had expected.

He turned himself onto his knees, still between Caleb’s legs. His hands went into the wizard’s hair, pulling against the leather thong used to tie it back. One of Caleb’s hands returned to his lower abdomen, still warm from the fading magic.

“What would you like me to do?” Caleb asked quietly, hand creeping towards the top of Molly’s trousers. “Do you want me to touch you?”

Molly nodded, only millimetres away from Caleb’s lips. “Not underneath my small clothes. Not unless I change my mind.”

Caleb repeated the gesture, nodding his understanding as his fingers slipped to rub against Molly’s clit. The tiefling had to fight to withhold a yelp, pleasure surging with pain directly to his core. That didn’t seem to deter Caleb, who began to rub the same slow and steady circles with a ridiculous amount of precision. 

The rough fabric between Caleb’s fingers and Molly’s clit made it feel even better, the texture pushing him closer and closer to a fast orgasm he would not be able to avoid. He could feel himself leaking, the usual clear slick mixing with tangy blood - a thought that pulled an even louder moan from him.

Caleb jumped forward to cover Molly’s mouth with his own, pressing solidly against the tiefling with the palm of his hand. Teeth nipped at his lips, and more pain jolted wonderfully through his system. It felt like a battle, and Molly wasn’t going to let him win.

His fangs caught Caleb’s tongue, but Caleb just lifted his spare hand to Molly’s hair and tugged sharply.

“I am trying to keep you quiet, Mollymauk,” Caleb laughed under his breath, pressing a nipping kiss to his jaw, directly below his ear. “We don’t want the others to wake up, now, do we?”

His brain was too jumbled to decide if he even cared. All he could think about was Caleb moving further down his neck, nipping sharply over the peacock feathers.

Caleb’s fingers slipped further back, perhaps unintentionally, but the pressure against his slit made pleasure jolt through Molly’s entire body. His head fell forward onto Caleb’s shoulder as he tried to muffle a moan.

It must have spurred Caleb on because he immediately did it again. This time Molly couldn’t stop himself biting down into Caleb’s coat. The pleasure was starting to overwhelm him completely. Caleb’s hand moving faster over his clit, occasionally straying further backwards. He was still trailing bites down Molly’s neck, sparks blooming from the bite marks.

His orgasm took him by surprise. It wasn’t particularly satisfying, but it lifted the tension in his abdomen that he had no other way to resolve. Caleb’s hand slowed, mainly just pressing down so Molly had something to rub against.

The relief was short-lived, his body immediately fighting back. These cramps were even more painful, stabbing through his uterus, all the way to his outer lips. Molly couldn’t help reaching out to grab onto Caleb’s shoulders, pulling him even closer.

Caleb’s hand froze, moving his hand back as much as he could while leaving them under Molly’s trousers. “Are you alright?”

Molly took a deep breath, feeling himself shake slightly. It was getting worse now. “Cramps. More cramps.”

“Do you want me to move my hand?”

He shook his head, almost unaware he was doing it. “Maybe just keep going. The pressure felt good.”

There was a pause before Caleb’s hand pressed up against him again. His muscles spasmed uncomfortably, but the pleasure that followed made him gasp. Molly couldn’t stop himself grinding against his hand, talons digging into Caleb’s shoulders as it began to build.

Caleb’s fingers started to run along Molly’s slit, almost massaging his opening through the fabric layers. At the same time, the hand that was in Molly’s hair dropped back to his stomach, suddenly warm again. The repetitive motion returned, building his arousal, and making his muscles relax all over again.

“Does this help?”

He couldn’t respond verbally, a quiet moan being ripped from his throat.

Caleb smiled, pressing a much softer kiss to the juncture of Molly’s neck. “I will take that as a yes.”

Again, Caleb continued to push him closer to the edge, making Molly ache to be held down and fucked, hard and deep. He needed to be stretched open and filled, with whatever Caleb would give him.

And then Caleb moved, leaving Molly at his mercy. He moved his hand between Molly’s slit and his clit, pressing harder and softer and generally messing with Molly’s mind, even though he knew there must have been a pattern; because this was _Caleb_! There had to be one!

Except Molly couldn’t track what it was, completely lost in the feeling of fingers against him, and the steadily mounting need for skin to skin contact.

“Caleb,” he moaned sharply, feeling himself grind down on the other’s hand. “Please.”

“Please what?” Caleb asked carefully, hand still moving.

Molly pressed himself down more solidly against the fingers, which had thankfully moved back against his slit. “I need you inside me. Against me. Anything.”

It was then that Caleb stalled, watching him carefully as Molly continued to rock against his hand. “You said earlier that you didn’t want that.”

He still couldn’t stop his hips bucking, although he was too far gone to be embarrassed. “Unless I’ve changed my mind.”

“You’re turned on, and have already had more cramps. I don’t want to do anything you’ll regret later.” One of Caleb’s hands moved to grab Molly’s hips, holding him still and making him whine at the loss of contact. “I don’t want to do anything that will make you feel worse.”

Molly considered this for a second, trying to decide whether Caleb was right. He could understand Caleb’s worry, but he knew his own body. He reached down, pushing his own hand into his small clothes. “If you don’t want to, then I will.”

His opening was slippery and warm, blood coating his fingers as much as the usual slick. He could feel Caleb’s fingers through the fabric, on the back of his hand. His eyes focused on Molly’s face.

Molly didn’t even try and tease, plunging a finger into himself. A moan broke from his throat, and he threw his head back in an exaggerated motion, putting on a show for Caleb. The angle forced his fingers in deeper, making his legs shake. Whatever pain had been there before vanished almost immediately as he started to ride his own fingers, massaging his inner walls. Moans kept breaking from his mouth, unable to hold back as pleasure overwhelmed his system.

When he finally managed to open his eyes, Caleb was staring, eyes wide and mouth closed tightly.

“Caleb,” it was more of a gasped moan than he’d anticipated.

Then Caleb’s hand started to move, his fingers on Molly’s clit all over again. His still didn’t move under Molly’s small clothes, but immediately drove Molly up the metaphorical wall. He rubbed small circles over it, touch far too delicate.

Molly desperately curled his fingers into himself, trying and failing to catch his g-spot. His fingers were too deep, but it was what he needed to feel full and satisfied.

As his fingers sped up, Caleb’s hand finally pushing under his small clothes. It was awkward, but still infuriating with the skin to skin contact. He tried to ask for more, but his voice caught in his throat. All he could do was press himself against Caleb’s hand, hoping he got the message across.

Then Caleb’s hand started to move with Molly, making sure he wasn’t pressing any harder no matter how much Molly moved.

Molly leaned into him, pushing his face into Caleb’s neck. He kissed underneath his ear, whispering a quiet, “Caleb, please,” before pushing himself closer to Caleb’s body.

Except it didn’t work, and Molly heard Caleb’s light chuckle from under his breath. He pulled his hand away from the desperate tiefling, making Molly whine at the loss of contact.

He dug his fangs into the juncture of Caleb’s neck, making him suck in a sharp breath. It was followed by a quick lave of Molly’s tongue, covering the deep (and slightly bleeding) bruise.

Caleb tutted, his breath catching as he pulled his hand from Molly’s underwear. Molly hissed out a curse in Infernal, reaching out to drag Caleb’s hand back to him, but the wizard was faster. He grabbed Molly wrist with a bloodstained hand, putting the other on his waist, just above his hip bones. “Lie back, Mollymauk.”

He held Caleb’s gaze for a moment before he did as he was told. Caleb maneuvred him to rest his head against the pack Caleb had previously been leaning on. As soon as he was lying down, Molly returned the finger to his cunt, fucking himself with a quiet frustration at how much shallower he could reach.

Caleb shuffled between his legs pulling Molly’s trousers down with a sharp tug. He didn’t have time to consider what was happening before Caleb’s hands were on him again. One held his hips down, while the other pulled his underwear to one side. A finger toying against his opening, beside his own now still finger.

Molly gave the sharp nod Caleb had been waiting for, pushing his finger in beside Molly’s.

The stretch stung, his muscles sore after cramps and a previous orgasm, but the blood and cum provided enough lubricated. He stilled for a second as Caleb pressed in completely, letting the feeling of fullness flood his system with arousal. He seemed entirely unbothered by the state Molly must have been in, not looking away from Molly’s face as he started to move. Caleb seemed to know exactly what he wanted, moving only slightly faster than he had been on Molly’s clit.

Molly couldn’t stop himself rolling his hips, his own finger matching Caleb’s pattern. Caleb’s fingers curled pleasantly, not quite hitting the spot Molly wanted him to, but stretching his inner walls even further. His breath came out in gasps, unable to think about anything but the feeling of being fucked - finally, _finally_ \- and the burning of his untouched clit.

It only took another few minutes before Molly decided to touch himself, too desperate to ask Caleb to do it for him. His muscles twitched with the soft touch, making him even more desperate for his release.

And then Caleb caught his G spot with his finger, and Molly stood no chance. His orgasm was so intense he couldn’t even work himself through it, muscles seizing as he was wracked with intense pleasure.

Caleb smiled, continuing to press his finger against that spot, drawing out the aftershocks. “Could you keep going, _Schatz_? It feels like you could.”

He couldn’t speak, small, quaking shudders rocking through his body even now his orgasm had subsided. Caleb chuckled to himself, pressed a little harder, making Molly gasp, relaxing into the feeling being rung out.

He just about managed to nod.

Caleb leaned over him, pressing a surprisingly soft kiss to his cheek. “I’m going to need to hear your answer, Mollymauk. Yes, or no? Or wait?”

Molly made himself take a breath. Could he go again? Almost definitely, even if he was feeling rather sore and stretched out.

Maybe periods did have their uses.

He pulled his own finger out of himself, wincing at the uncomfortable feeling. Caleb shifted, this movement inside him making discomfort twist though his stomach.

Caleb froze, watching him carefully. “Mollymauk?”

“Not right now,” he said carefully, taking a deep breath before he continued. “Will you move? Carefully?”

Caleb hesitated before he nodded. The slide of his finger was accompanied by a burning pain and a rush of leaking blood. Molly held back a wince, letting his head fall back as he waited for the cramps to reappear.

“Are you alright?” Caleb asked quietly, running his non-bloody hand down over Molly’s thigh, the contact giving him something to focus on other than the floating of his brain.

He nodded, making sure to give Caleb a bright, reassuring smile. “More than alright. Excellent. Phenomenal.” His period cramps showed no sign of starting again, his muscles exhausted but relaxed. “And I have you to thank for that.”

“Ah, well… _Bitte_.” He was bright red again, scratching patterns against Molly’s skin. “I am glad I could help.”

Silence fell over them, more uncomfortable than it had the right to be. Molly shifted, a satisfying ache in his legs as he tried to stand himself up. Caleb sat himself back but didn’t speak. Molly considered going to change his pad before he replaced his clothing. He would survive without.

“I should sleep,” he said carefully, glancing around the campsite. Everyone still seemed to be asleep. “Before Nott comes back.”

Caleb blinked as if he’d forgotten about her completely. “Oh, _ja_, that is a good idea. She has been gone a while.” He scanned the tree line, before returning to look at Molly. “Perhaps I should go look for her.”

It was as much of a dismissal as Molly had ever heard, although he was sure Caleb had no regrets about what they had just done. As Caleb stood up to find his goblin friend, Molly took the initiative to step forward and press a soft kiss to the corner of his lips. “Goodnight, then, Caleb.”

He smiled softly, happily, before turning so he could kiss Molly fully. “Goodnight, Mollymauk.”

Molly nodded once, before making the short walk to his bed for the night. Glancing behind him, he could already see Caleb moving towards the treeline. With a contented sigh, he curled up beside Yasha to finally fall into a painless sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> (how do endings work again??)
> 
> Footnotes:
> 
> (1) Birch bark (the grey bark Yasha gives to Molly) is meant to relieve pain and muscle spasms when chewed, apparently.
> 
> (2) The idea of an overfilled bucket is a common metaphor for stress, anxiety, and generally the world getting to be too much. It's my favourite image to explain meltdowns, whatever may cause them!
> 
> (3) The taste of the bacon Nott gives Molly is based on the flavour of sulphur and gunpowder, as described here: https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20060622210300AAt90Jz&guccounter=1  
I know gunpowder isn't an accurate example of Nott's alchemy ingredients, but it fit in terms of a distinctive, but weirdly food-like flavour, so oh well.


End file.
